Our ‘Spirit of Botswana Journey’ is just around the corner. Jenny Richards of Our Afrika Safaris thought a few words of the local Setswana language would come in handy for you. So here is a basic list of helpful phrases.

A proficiency test is not scheduled at this time. But, then again, that trans-oceanic plane ride is long and to pass the time we just might ……

*Just so you know, in Robyn Scott’s book Twenty Chickens for a Saddle about growing up in Botswana, she calls the expression “Ga Ke Itse” – “Botswana’s conversational brick wall.”

Jenny suggests these fun, light-reading books about:

– The experiences of an Australian safari guide in the Okavango Delta,

1- Whatever You Do, Don’t Run
by Peter Allison

Razor-witted Allison spins tales of wildlife, camps and the life of a safari guide in these captivating stories, which as he says about guiding is all about “imparting your wisdom of the bush, making people aware of the value of all wildlife, not just lions and elephants, slyly trying to make conservationists of them while making the whole package entertaining.

2-The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency
by Jill Scott

A slice of Botswana culture and life. There is no better series than best-selling fiction author Alexander McCall Smith’s series about the warm and straight-shooting detective Precious Ramotswe, founder of Botswana’s unique The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency.

– The warmth and candor of an unconventional upbringing in Botswana fuels this memoir:

3- Twenty Chickens for a Saddle
by Robyn Scott

Haphazardly schooled by her free-spirited mother and tutored by her medical doctor father, Scott and siblings are left to roam the bush. She writes with compassion and a depth of understanding about Botswana, her adopted home.